Location trumps gas

Location trumps gas

Gasoline prices grab the headlines, but they often are not the key to slashing your transportation costs. A bigger factor can be location of your house.

If you live in the Verrado area of Buckeye, for example, you pay $2,997 a year on average in gas and car repairs, according to the Center for Neighborhood Technology.

Move to central Phoenix near Third Street and Earll Drive and the average cost drops to $923.

But the total transportation cost, including insurance and car payments, doesn't fall as dramatically with the move: from $9,834 in Verrado to $7,008 in central Phoenix. To achieve megasavings, you must sell a car or radically reduce your driving. And in the Valley, living close to transit is the best way to do so. Light-rail or bus service is available in central Phoenix but not in Verrado.